Written Answers Wednesday 30 January 2008

Scottish Executive

Animal Welfare

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take on animal disease prevention and control.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government has a range of statutory measures in place to support the control of notifiable diseases. In addition, it works in close partnership with stakeholder organisations to promote proactive approaches to non notifiable diseases.

Animal Welfare

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what effect it considers that the decision to remove the animal health and welfare scheme from the Scottish Rural Development Programme will have on standards of animal health and welfare.

Richard Lochhead: Animal Health and Welfare Management Programmes have been an important element in the promotion of animal health and welfare in Scotland. They are, however, only one element in the Scottish Government’s work to promote good practice and raise standards. Individual animal keepers remain the best placed to promote good animal health and welfare.

Animal Welfare

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what effect it considers that the decision to remove the animal health and welfare scheme from the Scottish Rural Development Programme will have on disease prevention and control.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government is committed to working to get animal health and welfare management programmes restored to the Scotland Rural Development Programme for future years. In the meantime, those producers who have already signed up to the scheme will continue to be supported throughout their five year commitment.

Animal Welfare

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will seek to reinstate the animal health and welfare scheme in 2009.

Richard Lochhead: Yes. As part of the commitment to reinstate the animal health and welfare scheme, I am writing to Mariann Fischer Boel to highlight the importance the Scottish Government places in this measures and obtain greater clarity on the Commission’s issues.

Civil Partnerships

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether registrars are required to take additional training to be permitted to officiate at civil partnership ceremonies.

Jim Mather: The registration service in Scotland is delivered by the 32 local authorities who are responsible for employing registration staff. Registrars are trained to perform a number of duties such as civil marriage ceremonies and civil partnership registrations. The necessary training is provided by the local authorities in accordance with guidance on the law and practice of registration issued by the General Register Office for Scotland.

Council Tax

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the revenue generated by a reduced council tax discount on second homes remains ring-fenced for the purpose of affordable housing.

John Swinney: Yes. Local authorities have the discretion to reduce or retain the council tax discount on second homes and long-term empty properties to between 10% and 50%. The additional income is retained locally and routed through registered social landlords for the provision of new-build affordable social housing to meet locally determined priorities.

Crime

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people in (a) Aberdeen and (b) Grampian were victims of (i) manslaughter or (ii) murder caused by alcohol-related violence from 2003 to 2007.

Kenny MacAskill: The crime of Manslaughter exists under English law and in other jurisdictions but is not a crime known to the law of Scotland. The nearest similar crime under Scots Law is that of Culpable Homicide. Figures for culpable homicide have therefore been used in this answer.

  The information requested is contained in the following tables:

  Number of Victims of Homicide1, by Drink/Drug Status of Accused at the Time of the Crime

  

 2003-04
 Drink/Drug Status of Accused
 All Victims


 Drunk
 Under the Influence of Drugs
 Both Drunk and Under the Influence of Drugs
 Neither Drunk nor on Drugs
 Not Known


 (a) Aberdeen City
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 0
 0
 1
 0
 3
 4


 Murder
 0
 0
 1
 0
 1
 2


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 0
 2
 2


 (b) Grampian
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 0
 0
 1
 0
 5
 6


 Murder
 0
 0
 1
 0
 2
 3


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 0
 3
 3



  

 2004-05
 Drink/Drug Status of Accused
 All Victims


 Drunk
 Under the Influence of Drugs
 Both Drunk and Under the Influence of Drugs
 Neither Drunk nor on Drugs
 Not Known


 (a) Aberdeen City
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 2
 3
 5


 Murder
 0
 0
 0
 1
 2
 3


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 1
 1
 2


 (b) Grampian
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 3
 6
 9


 Murder
 0
 0
 0
 2
 3
 5


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 1
 3
 4



  

 2005-06
 Drink/Drug Status of Accused
 All Victims


 Drunk
 Under the Influence of Drugs
 Both Drunk and Under the Influence of Drugs
 Neither Drunk nor on Drugs
 Not Known


 (a) Aberdeen City
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 1
 0
 0
 0
 1
 2


 Murder
 1
 0
 0
 0
 0
 1


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 0
 1
 1


 (b) Grampian
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 1
 0
 0
 1
 1
 3


 Murder
 1
 0
 0
 0
 0
 1


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 0
 0
 1
 1
 2



  

 2006-07
 Drink/Drug Status of Accused
 All Victims


 Drunk
 Under the Influence of Drugs
 Both Drunk and Under the Influence of Drugs
 Neither Drunk nor on Drugs
 Not Known


 (a) Aberdeen City
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 2
 1
 0
 2
 0
 5


 Murder
 2
 0
 0
 2
 0
 4


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 1
 0
 0
 0
 1


 (b) Grampian
 
 
 
 
 
 


 All Homicide
 4
 2
 0
 3
 0
 9


 Murder
 4
 0
 0
 3
 0
 7


 Culpable Homicide
 0
 2
 0
 0
 0
 2



  Note: 1. Recorded as homicide as at 19 November 2007.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many dental practices began offering NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside from April 2006 to March 2007.

Shona Robison: Three dental practices began providing NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside in the relevant period.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many dental practices stopped offering NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside from April 2006 to March 2007.

Shona Robison: One dental practice stopped providing NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside in the relevant period.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many dental practices have begun offering NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside since April 2007.

Shona Robison: One dental practice began providing NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside in the relevant period.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many dental practices have stopped offering NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside since April 2007.

Shona Robison: Three dental practices stopped providing NHS general dental services in NHS Tayside in the relevant period.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the median waiting times were for first out-patient appointments at Dundee Dental Hospital in the last 12-month period for which figures are available, broken down by (a) quarter and (b) speciality.

Shona Robison: The latest available information is shown in the table below. Later data are not currently held centrally because of changes to NHS Tayside’s patient administration records.

  NHSScotland Median Waiting Times in Days for a First Out-Patient Appointment following Referral by a General Medical or Dental Practitioner to Dundee Dental Hospital. Years Ending 30 September 2004 to 30 June 2005

  

 Speciality
 Median Wait in Days for the Year Ending


 September 2004
 December 2004
 March 2005
 June 2005


 Oral Medicine
 71
 80
 101
 101


 Oral Surgery
 97
 98
 98
 98


 Orthodontics
 52
 69
 81
 83


 Paediatric Dentistry
 36
 36
 40
 40


 Restorative Dentistry
 83
 81
 86
 88



  Source: SMR00, ISD Scotland.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients were waiting for first out-patient appointments following referral at Dundee Dental Hospital in each of the last four quarters for which figures are available, broken down by department.

Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. Information held relates only to the number of patients waiting for a first out-patient appointment with a consultant in all facilities providing dental specialties in Tayside, including Dundee Dental Hospital, Perth Royal Infirmary and Stracathro Hospital. The following table shows this information for the quarter end dates between 31 December 2006 and 30 September 2007.

  

 Quarter Ending
 Specialty
 Number of Patients Waiting


 December 2006
 Oral Medicine
 105


 Oral Surgery
 225


 Orthodontics
 30


 Paediatric Dentistry
 76


 Restorative Dentistry
 487


 March 2007
 Oral Medicine
 151


 Oral Surgery
 258


 Orthodontics
 74


 Paediatric Dentistry
 50


 Restorative Dentistry
 478


 June 2007
 Oral Medicine
 224


 Oral Surgery
 328


 Orthodontics
 88


 Paediatric Dentistry
 33


 Restorative Dentistry
 442


 September 2007
 Oral Medicine
 238


 Oral Surgery
 311


 Orthodontics
 114


 Paediatric Dentistry
 60


 Restorative Dentistry
 465



  Source: Out-patient Waiting List (OPWL), ISD Scotland.

Diabetes

Bashir Ahmad (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the incidence is of (a) type 1 and (b) type 2 diabetes in each NHS board area, broken down by ethnic group.

Shona Robison: Information on the incidence (diagnosis of new cases) of diabetes is not held centrally. This is because data on the date of diagnosis is still largely incomplete and unreliable in diabetes registers. There are, however, some specific research studies that have reported on the incidence of diabetes using research registers. For example, the Scottish Study Group for the Care of diabetes in the young reported on the incidence of type 1 diabetes in children (Rangasami JJ, Greenwood DC, McSporran B, Smail PJ, Patterson CC, Waugh NR. Rising incidence of type 1 diabetes in Scottish children, 1984-93. The Scottish Study Group for the Care of Young Diabetics. Arch.Dis.Child 1997;77:210-3). As far as we are aware, these studies have not included information on ethnicity.

  Information on the prevalence (number of cases of diabetes in the population at a particular point in time) of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in each NHS board area is available from the annual Scottish Diabetes Survey. This survey includes data from primary and secondary care and is currently the most comprehensive source of information on diabetes in Scotland. The survey was first published in 2001. The most recent report (for 2005) is available at:

  http://www.diabetesinscotland.org/diabetes/MaintainPages/pdfFiles/SDS2005.pdf.

  Information about ethnic differences in diabetes prevalence is not currently available at a national level. In the 2005 Scottish Diabetes Survey, data about ethnicity was only available for around a quarter of all patients. This would not give reliable breakdowns by ethnic group. The Diabetes Action Plan (Scottish Government, 2006) set a target that all areas should have a record of ethnicity for over 80% of patients on the register by the end of 2008.

  However, A report by the National Resource Centre for Ethnic Minority Health (NRCEMH) describes the prevalence of diabetes among ethnic minority groups in Glasgow and reports that diabetes prevalence was particularly high among Pakistani people see:

  http://www.nrcemh.nhsscotland.com/pdfs/Full%20Diabetes%20Report.pdf.

  Also, a study of diabetes among ethnic minorities in Tayside NHS Board area found that the prevalence of diabetes among South Asians was almost twice as high as that in the non-South Asian population see:

  http://www.chs.med.ed.ac.uk/phs/research/Retrocoding%20final%20report.pdf, table 3.6, page 30.

  The Scottish Public Health Observatory (ScotPHO) website (www.scotpho.org.uk) provides a guide to further sources of information on diabetes in Scotland, under the Health, Wellbeing and Disease tab at http://www.scotpho.org.uk/home/Healthwell-beinganddisease/Diabetes/diabetes_keypoints.asp.

Diabetes

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what evidence is being gathered on the effectiveness of the Keep Well programme in relation to the diagnosis of diabetes.

Shona Robison: Every patient who attends a Keep Well health check is assessed for diabetes. Patients who are diagnosed with diabetes are added to the diabetes register and as a consequence followed up, at a minimum, every 15 months, as required by the Quality Outcomes Framework (QOF).

Education

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Aberdeenshire Council on the provision of funding for a replacement Ellon Academy.

Maureen Watt: There have been general, rather than school specific, discussions with representatives of Aberdeenshire Council on the council’s school estate management and investment plans. Decisions on the deployment of capital resources at their disposal are matters for the council according to their assessment of needs and priorities.

Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005

Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation was undertaken in relation to the extension of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005.

Shona Robison: The extension of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005, to cover doctors, nurses and midwives whenever they are on duty, fulfilled a manifesto commitment. Although no additional consultation was undertaken, the arguments of different stakeholders have been well rehearsed when the act was originally debated in Parliament in 2005.

Enterprise

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-6141 by Jim Mather on 29 November 2007, what the composition will be of any recruitment panel for the appointment of the new Chief Executive of Scottish Development International and what role ministers will have in the appointment.

Jim Mather: The recruitment panel for the appointment of the new chief executive of Scottish Development International will consist of representatives from the Scottish Government and from Scottish Enterprise; a Civil Service Commissioner, and an external member.

  The involvement of ministers in senior recruitment is set out in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Guidance on Senior Recruitment, which can be found here:

  http://www.civilservicecommissioners.gov.uk/upload/assets/www.civilservicecommissioners.gov.uk/ocsc_guidance.pdf.

  Ministers will not be directly involved in the selection and recruitment process for this post, but will be kept fully up-to-date on the progress of the competition.

Enterprise

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is giving to the textile industry.

Jim Mather: Scottish ministers provide a wide range of support to the textiles industry through the Enterprise Networks, Scottish Development International and Regional Selective Assistance, our national scheme of financial assistance to industry.

  The Textiles Team in Scottish Enterprise works closely with the industry on a range of projects aimed at raising the profile of the industry, forging collaborative links in complementary technologies and supporting skill development. Textiles companies can rely on the range of business support services offered by Scottish Enterprise through Business Gateway and the account management mechanism. In addition, the Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service delivers specialist advice to manufacturing companies in Scotland, including the textile industry.

European Union

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether its negotiating approach to the December fisheries council would have differed from that of the UK Government and, if so, how it would have differed and what specific different outcomes it considers would have been achieved.

Richard Lochhead: The deal secured at the EU December Council was good for Scotland’s fishing industry and good for Scotland’s marine environment. It was also positive for all other parts of the UK, and I was pleased with the positive collaborative working, particularly with my ministerial colleague from Northern Ireland.

  The UK line would have been less persuasive and less well articulated, and the deal less beneficial for the UK fishing industry as a whole, without the effective, informed input of the Scottish Government. If Scotland had a seat at the Brussels negotiating table, that input would be even more influential, both during the autumn negotiations and, critically, in shaping the debate throughout the year. There would also be better negotiating processes, with a more transparent, systematic and proactive approach to preparing the negotiations in close and open collaboration with stakeholders across the UK.

  There is little to be gained by speculating on what specific outcomes might have been different. A key strength of the preparations undertaken by the Scottish Government was the intensive engagement with the fishing industry. From this it was clear that there should have been earlier acceptance across the UK of the merits of the approach behind Scotland’s Conservation Credits Scheme. I am delighted that the benefits of our approach have now been fully recognised by the UK Government and the English fishing industry as a better way to bring about reductions in cod mortality. Had this position been adopted earlier, an even more persuasive and transparent message could have been sent out to the European Commission and other member states about the UK’s position.

Ferry Services

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-3672 by Stewart Stevenson on 13 September 2007, what progress has been made on the study into the use of road equivalent tariff to set ferry fares on services to the northern and western isles; which stakeholders (a) have met or (b) are still to meet the consultants undertaking the study; what stage has been reached in the choice of ferry route or routes to be used for the road equivalent tariff pilot and when the choice will be announced, and when it is expected that the overall study will be completed and its conclusions and recommendations announced.

Stewart Stevenson: It is anticipated that the first phase of the RET study will be concluded in February. The conclusion of the first phase of the study will provide details of the planned pilot. An announcement on the way forward for RET will be made shortly.

  The consultants have met with representatives from the following organisations-

  Argyll and Bute Council

  Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd

  CalMac Ferries Ltd

  Comhairle nan Eilean Siar

  Highland Council

  Highlands and Islands Enterprise

  HITRANS

  North Ayrshire Council

  Northlink

  Orkney Islands Council

  Shetland Islands Council

  Strathclyde Partnership for Transport

  ZETRANS.

  The consultants also met with representatives drawn from the local community, business and the haulage industry in the Western Isles. The consultants are currently organising a further meeting with stakeholders to discuss the emerging findings from the first phase of the study.

Housing

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive why priority need for housing assessment is to be phased out by 2012 and how it will deliver on this commitment.

Stewart Maxwell: The Homelessness etc (Scotland) Act 2003 contains a target to abolish the current distinction between homeless households assessed as having a priority need for accommodation and other homeless households by 2012. Achievement of the 2012 target is included as an indicator within the national performance framework agreed with COSLA.

  A wide range of actions is required to deliver on this target. The Scottish Government will take account of the report of the Homelessness Monitoring Group and the findings of the Homelessness 2012 Support Project sponsored by the Scottish Government and the Association of Local Authority Chief Housing Officers in working with local authorities and other delivery partners towards the target.

Housing

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether local connection is to be removed as a criterion for social housing allocation; whether it considers that this will cause concern in communities and, if so, whether it will reconsider its position on this matter.

Stewart Maxwell: Local connection is not a statutory criterion for social housing allocation in Scotland. Social landlords are required by the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 to admit anyone over 16 to their housing list who lives in their area or has one of a list of reasons for wanting to move to the area. Guidance on the 2001 act makes clear that applicants for housing should not be debarred because they have no local connection with an area, although local connection might be a factor in determining priority.

  Scottish homelessness legislation allows local connection to be taken into account in determining which local authority has a duty towards a homeless household. The Homelessness (Scotland) Act 2003 introduced powers for Scottish ministers to modify the relevant provisions. The Scottish Government will discuss the exercise of these powers with local authorities, following concerns raised during a consultation exercise carried out by the previous administration and also during the Homelessness 2012 Support Project sponsored by the Association of Local Authority Chief Housing Officers and the Scottish Government.

Justice

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive in how many criminal prosecutions in each of the last three years the Crown Office or Procurator Fiscal Service has made use of low copy number DNA in pursuing a prosecution.

Right hon Elish Angiolini QC: The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s Case Management Database does not include searchable information about individual types of evidence used by the prosecution, nor about evidence used in pursuing a prosecution.

  We have, however, been able to establish that low copy number DNA has been used in the course of three criminal investigations in the last three years – the prosecution in 2005 of Luke Mitchell and the prosecutions in 2007 of Angus Sinclair and Vincent Simpson. Low copy number DNA was only actually led in evidence in the trials of Luke Mitchell and Vincent Simpson.

Justice

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions the Crown Office has had with other UK jurisdictions in respect of the implications of the ruling in the recent Omagh bombing case for the reliability of low copy number DNA and what the outcome has been of any such discussions.

Right hon Elish Angiolini QC: Crown Office officials have carried out an internal review of criminal cases and investigations involving the use of low copy number DNA and will liaise as appropriate with other agencies in the United Kingdom in relation to the approach to be taken when information from low copy number DNA analysis is being considered as potential evidence in criminal proceedings, and the prescribed standards to which all suppliers of such information must adhere to, to validate their techniques.

Legislation

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many regulations have been repealed since May 2007.

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many new regulations have been brought into force since May 2007.

Bruce Crawford: The information requested is not held centrally. Details of all Scottish Statutory Instruments are published on the Office of Public Sector Information website.

  The Scottish Government is determined to ensure effective regulation in Scotland while minimising the unnecessary costs and bureaucracy sometimes associated with compliance and inspection. We recognise that there are currently gaps in the information available and will be seeking to remedy this inherited situation. To this end, we are working with the Regulatory Review Group to investigate the best way of establishing appropriate base lines, including assessments of the number of new regulations and an analysis of the overall cost/benefit associated with regulations to businesses in Scotland.

Livestock

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made an assessment of the implications for Scottish farmers and crofters of the proposed introduction of an electronic identification system for sheep and, if so, what the conclusion is of any assessment made.

Richard Lochhead: Previous trials have highlighted that the introduction of electronic identification (EID) across all sectors of the Scottish sheep industry will be challenging due to the unique stratified nature of our industry. Results of these trials were given to the Commission in a joint UK Evidence Report and the Commission also undertook trials in the UK in 2006-07. We will continue to work with all sectors of the industry to help better understand the various potential issues surrounding EID of sheep within the Scottish context. We will use the information from this to help inform Industry, the Scottish and UK Governments and the Commission policy decisions in establishing a workable and affordable EID system.

Livestock

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received from agricultural industry stakeholders concerning the proposed introduction of an electronic identification system for sheep and what the terms were of any representations.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government continues to work with all agricultural industry stakeholders through the joint Government/industry working group on electronic identification (EID). The industry stakeholders provided their time and resource to earlier trials which formed part of the UK Evidence Report. We urged the Commission to take account of the report in seeking a delay for the introduction of EID on 1 January 2008 as laid out in EU Council Regulation 21/2004. The Commission recommended that the introduction of EID be delayed until 31 December 2009 and we believe that was because of the extensive lobbying and representations by both the Scottish Government and industry stakeholders. The Scottish Government will continue to work with industry stakeholders and the Commission to find a workable and affordable EID system for the industry taking account of the unique stratified nature of the Scottish sheep movement system.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what total costs have been calculated to be attributable to the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 2007.

Richard Lochhead: In response to the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Surrey the Scottish Government committed a £25 million support package to provide relief and recovery to those most affected.

  Costs to the industry from the impact of the necessary movement restrictions are currently being assessed as part of Professor Scudamore’s review into the Scottish response. The results of this research will be published in due course.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to protect buyers’ and sellers’ animals from bluetongue at the forthcoming Perth Bull Sales.

Richard Lochhead: Perth Bull Sales are important sales attracting buyers and sellers from a wide area of the UK, and the organisers have been in discussion with the Scottish Government, including veterinary advisors, about what measures are required to best mitigate any risk.

  Any animals coming to the sales from the bluetongue restricted zone will be subject to EU regulations, including the requirement for negative results from pre-movement testing for bluetongue before they can exit the restricted zone.

  In addition, animals arriving in Scotland will be subjected to further checks through the post-movement notification and checking regime recently put in place in Scotland for animals arriving from a bluetongue Restricted Zone.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made on limiting the risk of bluetongue being imported to Scotland from continental Europe.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government has ensured that strong representations have been made to the European Commission to ensure that robust rules are in place to regulate the movement of susceptible animals out of bluetongue restricted zones. At the 10 January meeting of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health the European Commission challenged all member states to ensure that the regulations are observed.

  As a further protection post-import testing of susceptible animals continues to be undertaken. Industry can help to reduce the risk of disease incursions by not sourcing stock from areas of high-risk.

Local Government Finance

Cathie Craigie (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to cancel community charge arrears.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government does not have any plans to change the current arrangements for dealing with community charge arrears.

Police

Hugh Henry (Paisley South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers had been scheduled to undergo training in the current financial year prior to the announcement of 150 additional places.

Kenny MacAskill: Before the announcement of the additional 150 recruits in this financial year was made in November, this government had inherited a situation where police forces had projected that 577 officers would be recruited in 2007-08, the lowest level since devolution.

  Projections are made by police forces at the beginning of each year but are subject to change due to a number of factors such as increased unexpected retirements and other natural wastage or an increase in retentions.

Rail Services

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to encourage people to use the rail network for commuting to work.

Stewart Stevenson: We are improving journey times, we are investing in new services, we are enhancing rolling stock and, in the last year, we have provided funding for more than 250 extra parking spaces at rail stations.

Renewable Energy

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it will give to local authorities to help them to achieve their contribution towards the national target of 40% energy generation from wind power.

Jim Mather: There are no targets for individual local authorities. The national target is to generate 50% of Scottish electricity demand from renewable sources by 2020.

  However, the Scottish Government will provide advice and support to planning authorities on implementing Scottish Planning Policy (SPP) 6. In regards to onshore wind farms, we will issue guidance on the preparation of supplementary planning guidance. We have also recently appointed a team of consultants to provide expert advice to authorities on the tasks of reviewing and if necessary amending existing policies.

Renewable Energy

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will set individual targets for local authorities to help them to achieve their contribution towards the national target of 40% energy generation from wind power and, if so, what those targets will be, broken down by local authority.

Jim Mather: The target for the amount of electricity generated from renewables in Scotland is 50% of whole Scottish demand by 2020. There are no targets for individual technologies and the 50% target will be met from a wide range of renewable sources.

  There are no plans to set targets for individual local authorities.

Schools

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to provide access to funding over and above its three-year settlement to Fife Council for new school buildings in each of the next three financial years.

Maureen Watt: The concordat signed with COSLA on 14 November 2007 set out the resources being made available by the Scottish Government to local authorities over the next three years. Under the terms of the concordat, we will be providing local authorities with almost £3 billion of capital resources over that period to secure investment in schools and other local authority infrastructure.

  Allocations of capital resources within the three-year settlement are set out in Annex I of Finance Circular 6/2007, which can be found on the Scottish Government website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/local-government/17999/11203.

  It is now for Fife Council to determine what proportion of those allocations will be spent on new school buildings.

Schools

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Fife Council regarding the building of new schools in Fife.

Maureen Watt: The Scottish Government has periodic meetings with all local authorities to discuss their school estate management and investment plans detailed decisions on the deployment of capital resources and plans for new schools are matters for the local authorities.

Schools

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what net benefit to GAE in East Ayrshire has been derived from the area’s small rural schools in each of the last three financial years, broken down by school.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what net benefit to GAE in East Ayrshire is projected to be derived from the area’s small rural schools in each of the next three financial years, broken down by school.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what net benefit to GAE in South Ayrshire has been derived from the area’s small rural schools in each of the last three financial years, broken down by school.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what net benefit to GAE in South Ayrshire is projected to be derived from the area’s small rural schools in each of the next three financial years, broken down by school.

Maureen Watt: GAE allocations are not assessed or allocated on a school-by-school basis. They are a component of the more complex local government funding formula which is used to calculate a single revenue grant figure for each council. It is then a matter for each individual council to decide how best to deploy the resources according to local needs and priorities.

Scottish Government Funding

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what total amount was allocated to the Early Years and Childcare Workforce Development Fund in each year from 2003 to 2007 and what percentage of the budget for children and young people this represented.

Adam Ingram: Whilst local government had flexibility to allocate other resources to this area, the specific amounts allocated to local government for Early Years and Childcare Workforce Development from 2003 to 2007 were as follows:

  2003-04 - £3.6 million

  2004-05 - £6 million

  2005-06 - £6 million

  2006-07 - £6 million.

  Some spending on children and young people will have been subsumed within budgets that covered services to people of all ages – e.g. community health – and as such, it is not possible to identify the total budget for children and young people over this period. It is not therefore possible to present this as a percentage of the budget for children and young people.

Scottish Government Funding

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive on what basis funds were distributed to each local authority area under the (a) Community Regeneration, (b) Working for Families, (c) Changing Children’s Services (social inclusion element), (d) Community Voices, (e) Financial Inclusion, (f) Workforce Plus and (g) More Choices, More Chances funds.

Stewart Maxwell: These funding programmes did not share a common allocation methodology. Each was allocated based on the key principle of up-to-date objective evidence of levels of need in local areas.

Scottish Government Funding

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what estimates it has made from the efficiency savings from combining the Community Regeneration, Working for Families, Changing Children’s Services (social inclusion element), Community Voices, Financial Inclusion, Workforce Plus and More Choices, More Chances funds into the Fairer Scotland Fund.

Stewart Maxwell: The replacement of seven individual funds, each with its own individual monitoring regime, with the Fairer Scotland Fund will bring real benefits for Community Planning partners in terms of reduced bureaucracy, and monitoring and reporting requirements. Consolidation of these funding streams will also give local partners more flexibility to allocate funds to meet local needs and priorities. It will be for each individual Community Planning Partnership to estimate and manage any resultant savings.

Scottish Government Funding

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-7864 by Adam Ingram on 17 January 2008, how much of the £34 million will be allocated to South Lanarkshire, regardless of whether or not it has been ring-fenced.

Adam Ingram: The Scottish Government is investing record levels of funding in local government and creating a new relationship built on mutual trust and respect. As described in the Concordat this gives local government increased local flexibility and reduced bureaucracy to assist them and their partners in delivering high quality services. South Lanarkshire Council will receive a proportionate share of this record funding and can use these resources to improve support to disabled children and their families as well as the many other groups throughout the community to whom they provide vital services.

Speech and Language Therapy

Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to increase the number of speech and language therapists.

Shona Robison: All NHS boards receive an annual allocation of funds. Each board’s allocation will be increased in each year of the spending review period. It is for each NHS board to decide how best to utilise these funds to meet the health care needs of its resident population taking account of national and local priorities, including speech and language therapy services. It will be for boards to decide whether any of the additional funding being made available to them is used for this purpose.

Sport

Mr Frank McAveety (Glasgow Shettleston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures have been taken to ensure that Scotland’s elite athletes are not disadvantaged by any recent disruption and uncertainty surrounding the Scottish Institute of Sport.

Stewart Maxwell: Support for Scotland’s elite athletes will continue as normal, but under the new arrangements the Institute of Sport that supports them will have more secure and stable funding as a result of moving to government funding rather than the unstable lottery funding on which it has had to rely to date.

  The structure of the new organisation will ensure our athletes have the very best of support and the SIS will have the primary responsibility for delivering on the elite athlete programme.

  The high-performance hub will remain in Stirling and will be encouraged and supported to continue operating in the innovative and unique way appropriate to the performance sport environment.

  The institute’s objectives will remain to put more of Scotland’s best athletes on the podium at major international sports events.

  The de-centralisation of the delivery structure will also ensure that we have the right people in the right place across the whole of Scotland.

Water Services

Joe FitzPatrick (Dundee West) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the implications would be if £75 million was cut from the Support for Borrowing line of the Water budget over the next three years.

Stewart Stevenson: If the Support for Borrowing line for Scottish Water was cut by £75 million, a corresponding cut in its investment programme would be required.

  A cut of this size would mean the deferment or cancellation of many essential projects which improve services to customers.